Do you only drink coffee or the same kind of tea all the time? A bit of variety can give you a bunch of added health benefits…
It’s calorie-free, soothing and tastes great, hot or cold!
“And the scientific evidence is compelling that it both prevents and treats countless medical conditions,” says Tufts University tea researcher Jeffrey Blumberg, Ph.D.
The magic elixir? Tea!
Whether you choose black, green or white, it’s packed with antioxidants that address cancer, heart disease and other life-threatening diseases.
All three kinds of tea come from same plant, camellia sinensis, but they’re processed differently–so though their health benefits are nearly identical, each one brings something special to the pot.
And variety is the spice of life, after all, so why not give all three a try? Here’s how each variety of tea can boost your health:
*Black. Drink just half a cup a day of this American favorite, and you can slash your risk of high blood pressure in half, according to a Chinese study. And downing about four cups daily can reduce “bad” LDL cholesterol by 11%, say USDA researchers.
The flavonoids in black tea help keep “bad” LDL cholesterol molecules from oxidizing—so they’re less likely to clog up your arteries.
Bonus: Asian research suggests black tea prevents bad breath and gum disease.
Green. Because it undergoes considerably less processing than black tea, green tea has more of the cancer fighting compound EGCG.
In Harvard animal studies, drinking this powerhouse antioxidant killed tough-to-treat esophageal cancer, which has increased more than any other type of cancer over the past three decades.
And research from the University of Arizona revealed that cancer markers in the urine of smokers were reduced by 25% in green tea drinkers.
“Green tea fights cancer in a multitude of ways,” says Blumberg. “It neutralizes free radicals, stimulates the production of detoxification enzymes, promotes immune system responses and signals the body to get rid of mutating cells.”
Bonus: EGCG revs up your metabolism, helping you burn calories.
White. This premium tea is made from the most tender blossoms and leaves of the tea plant. Research from Pace University credits the tasty brew with knocking out viruses, bacteria and fungi. And University of Oregon researchers found remarkable anti-tumor powers in white tea—that helped to stop 75% of cancer tumor growth.
“This tea seems to turn off the signaling pathways that tell cells to divide wildly,” explains Gail Orner, Ph.D., a researcher at Oregon’s Linus Pauling Institute.
Drink your tea hot, Blumberg advises–or, if you prefer it iced, make a very strong brew, since most iced tea is so weak it has only about 10% of the health benefits of the hot drink.
A tea of a different color
Try it red. Made from an entirely different plant than black, green and white teas, rooibos or red tea is the darling of South Africans and fast gaining popularity in the U.S. Rooibos has been show to help protect the liver from toxic damage and prevent the accumulation of fats that have been linked to age-related diseases.
